Scotland has become the first part of the UK to ban smacking children.
New legislation means parents in Scotland will face criminal charges if they are found guilty of hitting their kids as a way of disciplining them.
It comes after MSPs at Holyrood passed the Equal Protection from Assault Bill, by 84 votes to 29, which was brought forward by Green Party member John Finnie.
Parents and guardians are currently allowed to use ‘reasonable’ physical force to discipline children but this will change under new legislation.
It is aimed at giving minors the same protection from assault as adults, as well as bringing Scotland in line with United Nations recommendations.
The Bill was passed at the Scottish Government on Thursday, despite a YouGov poll of 1,546 adults from across the UK suggesting 57 per cent oppose the move.
Wales is also set to ban smacking children and a bill is currently working its way through the Welsh assembly that would remove the defence of ‘reasonable punishment’.
Many parents have been divided over the issue, with parents in support of smacking saying it can help young children who cannot understand speech to better learn from mistakes.
Mr Finnie, who introduced the legislation in Scotland, said he was ‘absolutely delighted’ and that the approval of the Bill sent a ‘strong message’ that violence is never acceptable.
He said he was proud to have brought the Bill forward and it’s a step towards making Scotland ‘the best country in the world for children to grow up in’.
‘Physical punishment has no place in 21st century Scotland. The international evidence tells us that it can have serious impacts on children, and that it is not effective,’ he said.
‘As I have progressed this campaign over the last three years, it has become clear just how many people believed that striking a child was already outlawed.
Mr Finnie earlier addressed critics of the Bill, who suggested it could criminalise parents.
He said: ‘There is no evidence that a change to the law results in increased prosecutions in any of the more than 50 countries where some of the reforms have taken place.
‘In fact, this change in the law in Ireland prompted more parents to contact services to ask for help and support with alternative disciplining techniques.
‘Surely this is something which should be welcomed, and an encouraging consequence of a positive legal change.’
He said many support services, both within the Government and in the third sector, anticipate a similar reaction in Scotland to that in Ireland and are ready to help parents with the change.
But Scottish Conservative MSP Oliver Mundell said he could not support the Bill.
He added: ‘I believe violence against children is wrong. However, that is not the issue before us today.
‘Today we are being asked to pass into law primary legislation that is imprecise and suboptimal.
‘I don’t think that it’s foreseeable at all for parents what circumstances they could find themselves entangled with the criminal justice system.’
